"Metterlich," Eris said abruptly.

"What?" the sorcerer raised an eyebrow as he sat back up on his cot.

The dank holding cell was hardly a luxurious affair, with no decor and minimal illumination from a single barred window near the ceiling.

She glanced in the direction of the guardroom before continuing, "We can't stay here, we must leave, we have to escape."

"Hubert will get us out, you have to trust him," the young wizard said confidently.

"Do you really believe that?" the dryad asked cynically.

"He has inquisitorial authority. That must be respected by the locals. We can't waste days out here, he'll get us out soon," he emphasized.

"We are beyond the power of his inquisitorial mandate here. By the time there's some sort of letter from higher authority- If-," Eris shook her head, "We have to escape."

"And how do we do that? Do you intend to gnaw through the bars?" Metterlich snorted, unwilling to entertain such a ridiculous line of thought, "Or perhaps you expect me to level this dungeon with magic?"

"Can you do that?" she asked curiously.

"No. I probably couldn't even melt the door. The damned lock is runically sealed. I could exhaust myself trying to break the steel and stone and then what? The whole town will be alerted and I will be in no shape to fight," he explained coldly, "I'm not Katarina, I'm not Orrin, I'm not Ranulf. I'm only a learner, and that power is still far beyond me."

The dryad seemed to accept that, and nodded her acknowledgment.

"Metterlich, I don't want to die here," Eris said miserably.

"We aren't gonna die here."

"They want to hang us for what happened in the market," she frowned in consternation.

"Hubert will get us out," he insisted, "There were plenty of witnesses, and we did nothing wrong."

"I nearly killed a man, snapped the bastard's arm like a twig," the dryad let out a wary chuckle.

In spite of her words, the wizard could see the wateriness in her eyes.

"He deserved it. You did the right thing," he smiled encouragingly.

Eris went silent, knees drawn up to her face as she sat curled on her cot. Metterlich groaned and laid back down. As much as he hated it, all they could do was wait. He wondered what Katarina would say. Would she have accepted their situation? The old witch always seemed cold and collected, yet somehow he suspected that were she in his position, the prison would be a razed husk by this point, runic wards or no. But he didn't have that sort of power. He couldn't perform such a feat, and even if he could, he wouldn't have. The risk wasn't worth it. Best let the law run its course. And thus he was stuck relying on Hubert.

"Metterlich, are you from the noble Rook family?" Eris asked, abruptly changing the subject.

"Yes, my father is the Lord Rook, why?" he said.

"As in the Astanian Duke Rook?" she inquired.

"Yes, that's the one," the man shrugged.

"So you're a nobleman, huh? A high- high nobleman," she continued.

"Technically, yes," he nodded absentmindedly, "Second-born no less."

"Why become a wizard?"

"When my parents found out I had the wyrd blood, they thought it would be unwise to waste my talents as an administrator or some second-rate leech and deviant," he said slowly.

A noble Rook, blessed with the powers of sorcery? Truly destined for great things. Destined to push the family name to the forefront of Astana's chronicles. Metterlich snorted at the thought. If only his family could see him now.

"They chose to send me to the Ressigen School. That was where Katarina found me six years ago. Offered to teach me further. Even then her reputation was nigh unparalleled, how could I refuse."

The dryad nodded at that, her eyes vacant, as if in thought.

"Bet sitting in prison with a savage wasn't how you expected your studies to go," she laughed and cast him a toothy smile.

Somehow the whole gesture seemed hollow, as if the humor were a weak facade.

"Perhaps not," Metterlich chuckled, clasping his hands across his chest.

Finally, he cast a glance in Eris' direction, "How about your family name?"

"Setreska-Vlanos, clan and family name in one," she snickered.

"Oh," Metterlich said simply.

"It's a bit of a mouthful," her laugh took a slightly nervous tone.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"When your parents decide Metterlich is a good name, you don't worry about a name being a mouthful," he chuckled and turned his gaze back toward the ceiling.

"So how did you come to be- here?" the wizard asked.

"Messy story," the dryad smiled, her teeth flashing in the darkness.

"Fair enough," Metterlich shrugged, "We do have time though. It's going to take Hubert a moment to find out we're missing. Hopefully not too much longer to get us out though."

For a minute, she sat silent, mulling over his remark, the tip of her tongue protruding from between her lips.

"Hubert is right, Metterlich," she frowned at him, "Perhaps hypocritical, but he is right when he calls my people savages."

"Don't be that harsh on yourself," the wizard grimaced, "Hubert is an old cynic."

"You wouldn't say that if you saw our wars," she shook her head sadly.

"You know of the battle at Lansport?" Eris asked.

"Yeah, ten years back, against the woodland tribes," Metterlich answered, "We won."

"No we about it, Metterlich. You won," the dryad said miserably, "Those woodland tribes you speak of- My people- they pulled together all their strength to stop you there. To fight for our land, our grounds. And we lost. Your people won."

"Do you know how much of the Zronlas we lost?" she raised an eyebrow.

"The what?" Metterlich asked.

"The Great Northern Forest," she reiterated.

"How much?"

"Half. Half of our hunting grounds. Half of our fields. Half of our villages. Three of the great clans lost all of their land, four lost parts," Eris muttered, her voice distant and strained, "That only led to more war. Clan on clan, dryad on dryad. Murdering. Burning. Raping and looting. Genocide beneath the boughs. If you saw my people at war, Metterlich, you would see Hubert is right."

"Even the clans that won were bled dry, turned into ashen shadows. We murdered each other for mere scraps. All while you lot grew stronger," she chuckled half-heartedly, “So, in desperation, I suppose, I went south. Many others of my kind have. You have to live- Somehow.”

"I got lucky," she snorted, forcing a grin to her face, her eyes turning glassy, "I got lucky that Katarina needed a hunter of my caliber. Of my breed, so to speak. She needed a monster, and I suppose she got one."

"Don't talk that way about yourself, won't do any good," the wizard insisted emphatically.

"My parents don't know. My brothers. My family. They don't know where I went. They won't know I'm here," she said hurriedly, the words seeming to spill out blindly, "I didn't tell- I didn't tell them. Father said no-"

"Eris, quiet," he said bluntly, trying to strike an assertive tone, "You're going to be fine. This is all going to be fine."

Eris nodded and went silent, allowing Metterlich to doze off with his thoughts.

Silence. Darkness. It was almost calming. The only disruption was the sound of Eris shifting repeatedly on the edge of her cot. Agitated. Nervous. Even her breathing was audibly different.

"I don't want to die here," she repeated once more.

Metterlich could have sworn he heard her teeth grinding together.

"Hubert will get us out soon," he said.

"They're not going to let me out, the man who I hurt- nearly killed was a damn noble. I know how they see me, I'm no better than an animal in their eyes," she shook her head in panic, “ They'll put me down like a dog.”

Metterlich had never seen Eris so utterly defeated and terrified. Her large yellow eyes, dilated in the darkness of the prison, were brimming with tears.

"You might be freed, but me? What chance- What chance do I have of that," she rambled, her lisp growing heavier with every word, "I don't want to- I don't want to die here."

Metterlich lay deathly still, staring at the ceiling and unsure of what to say. She had descended into hysteria when what they needed was to stay calm and wait for the inquisitor. At least the dryad seemed to have realized the excessiveness of her outburst and gone back to sitting in silence.

"Can you sense the guards?" Eris asked him abruptly.

"Huh?" the wizard found himself jolted from his thoughts.

"With your wyrd sight? Can you sense the guards?" she asked again.

"Yes," he said flatly.

"Could you possibly manipulate their mind from here," the dryad pressed further.

"I could, maybe, wouldn't be easy but I could," Metterlich answered, "Why?"

"Could you lure one of them here, alone?" Eris raised an eyebrow.

The wizard's lips drew taut and he frowned at the notion.

"Why?" he asked again.

The dryad's attitude was disconcerting, and he didn't like the nature of her questioning.

"We have to escape, you bait him here, kill him, get the keys, and we run," she said decisively.

"I'm not killing some poor guardsman who isn't even at fault here," Metterlich hissed at her.

"I'll kill him. You need not lift a finger," her voice took on a pleading tone.

"No," he snapped back.

"Please. It's the only way," she begged him.

"I won't commit murder when there's a peaceful resolution to be had," he very nearly spat the phrase at her.

"For me there isn't," she shook her head, long black tresses falling across her hands as she laid her face in her palms.

"Of course there is, just stay calm," Metterlich said, taking a slightly more soothing tone.

"Look at me," she said bluntly.

Warily, the wizard rolled up, looking directly at the distraught dryad.

Eris stared back at him, and in the dim light, he wasn't sure what he should have been looking for. She looked more human than ever. No more than a slender, comely young woman were it not for her slightly oversized eyes.

"Look at these," she said coldly, pulling back her lips to reveal her jagged teeth, and gesturing at him with her claws, "Do you think they'll see anything else? What am I? A demon? A monster? Perhaps a magical experiment gone wrong?"

"You need to have some faith," Metterlich tried to say gently, aiming for a slightly more mollifying tone, "There's no need for killing. We'll be out of here soon."

Eris just stared at him, eyes imploring.

"I don't want to die here," she said weakly.

"We won't, and there's no point in arguing about it further. We have a mission to complete and risking getting killed now is not the way to do it," Metterlich snorted, annoyed, and rolled onto his back. The dryad was a savage, and the only resolution she knew was violence. The law was the law, and if they were meant to enforce it, they best follow it, as frustrating as it was. Mentally, he wanted to kick himself for his own stupidity. His own impetuousness that had gotten them into this situation. A ragged sigh escaped his lips as he shifted atop the uncomfortable cot, feeling the hard wood pressing uncomfortably through the threadbare blanket.

As he did so, Eris pulled her knees closer and went completely quiet, staring blankly at the wall. All they could do was rest and wait.

"Don't do anything foolish," he muttered to himself, remembering Katarina's words, "Don't get yourself killed."

And that was what he was doing. Waiting and playing it safe. His mind wandered, trying to find some escape from the boredom in the darkness.

"I was so careful- I was so careful-," Eris was muttering to herself quietly, rocking back and forth on her cot, "I should have stayed- I should have listened- I was careful- Why- Why-"

Metterlich frowned, annoyed by the rambling, even as it slowly died down, replaced by rapid, shallow breathing as the woman tried to calm herself.

And then he felt it. A mass of people, approaching their cell. A sudden influx of minds and thoughts all moving at their own pace. A tide of voices all clamoring over top one another. A dozen, perhaps as many as two.

There were some shouts and orders, none of which he could make out. The door clanged loudly as it swung open, prompting the wizard to sit up to attention. Eris, he noted, remained curled up on her bench, staring at the far wall in the same manner as when they had ended their discussion.

He watched and waited patiently as a dozen soldiers filed in through the narrow entryway, muskets at the ready. The lieutenant in charge stepped close to the cage, eyeing Metterlich critically through the bars.

"You lucked out, turns out you're free to go," the young officer said, lip twitching with annoyance as he gestured for a sergeant to unlock the door, "Stand up."

The wizard obeyed, glancing over at Eris, who remained seated.

"See, I told you Hubert would get us," the wizard laughed, motioning for her to stand as he made his way through the entryway.

Eris didn't move.

"Only you, sorcerer, she stays put," the lieutenant said with a harshness that belied his age.

Eris stayed frozen, eyes locked onto some distant corner of the wall.

"What? You can't be serious?" Metterlich shook his head in disbelief.

"Orders came from up top that you were to be freed," the officer said contemptuously, showing him an officially signed decree, "That thing- woman, was mentioned nowhere."

The name of the signee was illegible, but the instructions were clear. The wizard Lord Metterlich Rook was to be freed from prison, immediately. There was no mention of Eris in the short command.

The wizard froze, knuckles going white as he clenched the paper.

"Let's go," the officer ordered.

"No, no, no," Metterlich repeated to himself, shaking his head, unwilling to accept what he had read, "There has to be a mistake!"

"No mistake son," the man said bluntly, grabbing him by the arm and urging him out, "Orders're clear."

"You can't be serious, it's not right!" Metterlich tried to slow down, to make them stop.

With a none-too-gentle jab of a musket, he was urged onward, sputtering ignored protests.

As he cast one final glance at Eris, she was still curled up on her cot, fixated on the far wall. Her eyes were glass.